Comeback Notice

A chawl in Ghatkopar is soon to be razed. Its dilapidated shell, narrow doorways, colonial pillars, rusted walls and cracked windows contradict its existence as the “lifeline” of Mumbai. For Mumbai-based Sudarshan Shetty, it is reminiscent of a place he grew up in. The chawl becomes the subject of a 10-minute video Waiting for Others to Arrive for his solo exhibition titled “Every Broken Moment, Piece by Piece” at GALLERYSKE.

“It is an analogy to loss. The film is a space for regeneration and my inner urge to preserve it,” says Shetty. Showcasing after 10 years in the Capital, his other nine mixed media works comprising broken ceramic crockery, vases, old wooden doors and chairs on display bring out the theme of the show, which according to the artist “is about recalling times gone by and is an attempt at rebuilding them. Every object in the show around us, in some way or the other, reflects our sense
of mortality.”

The 52-year-old has had his work tour international galleries including Tate Modern in London and New York’s Guggenheim Museum in the last decade. In this exhibition, he has scaled down his exhibits, as could be seen in an untitled work of ceramic China cups lying on a table. Nowhere close to his often large monumental sculptures, such as the 9,000-kg Flying Bus sculpture a red painted bus with large steel wings — that was displayed at the Bandra Kurla Complex. The ceramic cups were “artificially broken” and redesigned with carved wood in the broken areas. “There is an old saying that ceramic can never be mended. It’s pointless fixing it but this is my attempt at rebuilding it though it is never going to remain the same,” he says.

Another untitled kiosk-like structure, made using old pieces of wooden doors, resembles his 2010-installation for Louis Vuitton, titled House of Shades, which he made using 700 pairs of sunglasses. As one steps into the hut, which borrows elements from different architecture styles, including south Indian temples, a writing on the wall “God envies my mortality” greets the viewer.
Shetty’s solo show after 10 years certainly is a reminder of how moments are pieced together to make a memorable comeback.

The exhibition is on display till February 28 at GALLERYSKE, Connaught Place. Contact: 65652724